Technical University of Crete

Yannis A. Phillis was elected first Rector of the Technical University of Crete in 1993. Since then, he has been in office for 4 terms and 12 years in total until April 2013.

"You will hear many people like me giving you advice with the self-confidence of a specialist. Listen attentively but take nothing for granted. Question authority. History is full of wrong authorities in every field.

Right after WWII, a well-known Greek physicist had proven that flights to the moon are impossible because of the laws of physics.

In 1989, certain chemists announced cold fusion that could solve the global energy problem.

At about the same time, the Nobel Prize winner of physics, Shockley, who was one of the invertors of the transistor, was donating his sperm believing that his offspring would necessarily consist of geniuses.

Above all, avoid the prophets of social phenomena. Their ability to prognose social phenomena, in most cases, does not differ from that of a crystal ball reader.

Make your revolution without fanatism or violence, with a smile at the ready. Make your revolution for yourselves and society. You have two invaluable things, life and knowledge. Good luck!"

Yannis A. Phillis
(excerpts from a graduation speech)

While being Rector of the Technical University of Crete:

He founded in 1994 and directed until 2017the Park for the Preservation of Flora and Fauna in the University (description below).
The Technical University of Crete became a member of the European Universities Association (EUA), and the Conference of European Schools for Advanced Engineering Education and Research (CESAER), an association of leading European engineering schools, after complete applications were sent and the evaluation processes were completed.
As chair of the Greek Rectors Conference, he advised the Greek Prime Minister and the Minister of Education on matters of higher education and engineering.
He doubled the number of volumes of the university library.
He opened two new departments with BS, MS, and PhD programs:

1. Environmental Engineering

2. Architectural Engineering